Over the past few months, Rubicon staff has engaged in the Dismantling Cis-Hetero Normativity (DCHN) Experience as part of the organization’s efforts to live by its anti-oppression values. The experience was co-designed by a team of Rubicon staff and outside consultants who met for over 20 hours to develop the five modules and accompanying resources, which included training videos, stories, a glossary of terms, worksheets, and lists of books and movies that represent different LGBTQIA+ experiences.
In an introductory letter from Rubicon’s senior leadership team, the DCHN Experience was described as “the next step in Rubicon’s journey to advancer equity and ensure belonging.” The letter went on to state, “Our path forward requires everyone to demonstrate the behaviors that foster belonging, equity, and justice. Our dedication to transformative actions is inseparable from our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. It is central to our work that community members have the full opportunity to thrive.”
The DCHN Co-Design Team added, “The Dismantling CisHet Normativity Experience is a testament to Rubicon’s evolution and your willingness to create cultures of belonging, strong allies, and hold yourself accountable to inclusive behaviors.”
Throughout the DCHN Experience, staff members were encouraged to ask questions of themselves and one another that challenged cis-hetero norms. Topics included gender- and sexuality-based microaggressions, intersectionality and interconnected forms of oppression, gender and social norms around masculinity, faith-based biases, and historical violence and injustices against the LGBTQIA+ community, among others. Staff met in pairs and small groups to practice scenarios and discuss the topics during each module, and the final module included an evaluation of Rubicon’s collateral materials for gaps in inclusive language and imagery.
After the final module concluded, two members of the DCHN Co-Design team shared their thoughts on the experience, why they participated, and their hopes for Rubicon’s next steps.
When I was 14, I had an epiphany; I was a heterosexual. At that moment, I felt clear, comfortable, and lucky. I felt lucky because my high school offered a course that expanded my awareness and empathy. That class helped me understand that another person’s experiences and identities are as right, normal, good, and beautiful as mine. I also realized if I was clear, people who identify as homosexual were also clear; period – end of the story.
I felt lucky because I saw hatred, bigotry, and exclusion toward homosexuals. So while my LGBTQ friends may be clear about their sexuality, they may not be comfortable.
I couldn’t reconcile how I was more deserving or human than anybody else. Why should I be comfortable while someone else is living in discomfort and fear? I committed to befriending and supporting people who face hate for being clear about who they are.
My path to becoming an aspiring ally has not been linear or perfect. I have messed up, let people down, and was too quick and slow to act a lot of the time. Still, I put my ego aside and stay engaged because I want everyone’s comfort, clarity, and good fortune.
I believe Desmond Tutu’s quote, “If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor.” I never want to take the side of the oppressor. I decided to be part of the DCHN co-design team because I want to be on the side of the solution-bringers, the pro-human activists, and the dismantlers.
– Adrienne Kimball, Chief Talent Officer
I’m not sure how I got myself roped into this project! 😀 When I first came to Rubicon I asked about the LGBTQ ERG [employee resource group] and I quickly got involved. The ongoing conversations amongst the group indicated that there were some unmet needs from the organization. Perhaps some oversight about what equity looks like outside of the heteronormative perspective. Having come from an organization where the mission was to further equity for the LGBTQ+ community, I was well accustomed to being open about my queer identity. In my previous role as their grant writer, I advocated for the LGBTQ+ community with passion. I was surprised that Rubicon, which so fiercely championed racial equity, would have members of the organization that felt they couldn’t be themselves. I was not about to go back in the closet! I’m pretty sure those are the words I uttered as I blinked, and then, almost as if in an instant, we began designing the DCHN modules.
There’s so much to continue to unpack as we strive for equity. The complications of intersectionality are very apparent when we embark in “Oppression Olympics,” something that creeped its way into the DCHN experience once it was launched. Another challenge that I feel remained unresolved is the complicated and often avoided discussion about religion and the LGBTQ+ community. Ongoing conversations are needed in order to allow people to become familiar with these topics. Furthermore, we need to get comfortable talking about these issues if we aim to be more equitable in our treatment of others.
And we haven’t even touched the surface of ableism and ageism.
– Vanessa Ramos, Institutional Giving Manager
All employees were invited to share their feedback about the DCHN modules throughout the experience, and the final evaluation included space for staff to add their thoughts about what Rubicon’s next all-staff learning experience should cover. As Rubicon continues on its path to becoming an anti-oppression organization, staff members will undoubtedly continue to hold courageous conversations and seek out new trainings as they grow and evolve into empowered allies for all marginalized communities.